New member and new to raising chickens!

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snooki said:
Hey all! I got this baby chick a few days ago, and she was a bit of a spontaneous surprise so I don’t know anything about taking care of her. She’s been doing pretty well so far, and loves snuggling up to me and perching on my shoulder, but i decided to join the forum incase I have any questions. I know it’s highly recommended to have at least two chicks together, but unfortunately I just have her currently. She is usually very happy and is quiet and chirps softly since i spend a lot of time with her, but when i take breaks and leave her in her little area, she just chirps. I have plushies for her and i’m working on getting a mirror to put in there for her to help her feel less alone, but i’m also curious to know if there are any other ways that I can help her feel less alone and happy when i’m not with her. I plan on getting another chick sometime for her sake but i’m unable to right now. I also don’t know what breed of Chicken she is, so if it’s possible to tell from the picture, please lmk!
(i hope i posted this in the right thread,,)
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Welcome. We are here to help. I would keep her in until she has another friend, so that you can spend as much time with her as possible. When you are not with her, a mirror is very effective for socialization. A heating blanket is a creative idea. At her age, you need to keep her at 85 degrees and then lower 5 degrees each week until she is fully feathered. A heating blanket allows her to get heat but also to get away from it when she is too hot.
 
Debbie292d said:
Hiya, and welcome to BYC!! :frow

The feed he most likely gave you is chick starter/grower. You can get that at farm stores. No treats though until she's about a month or so older. She'll go nuts over a little scrambled egg, but when adding anything other than starter to her diet, they need grit. May need to pick up some chick grit too as you'll need that sooner or later.

Until you get another friend(s) for her, try playing the TV or a radio in the room she's in. We've had an orphan twice in the past and that seemed to do the trick.

It sure is cute! Good luck!!
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Good idea @Debbie292d. My handicap hen that cannot walk or drink/eat on her own watches Youtube live chickens on my ipad all day long.
 
triciayoung said:
Welcome. We are here to help. I would keep her in until she has another friend, so that you can spend as much time with her as possible. When you are not with her, a mirror is very effective for socialization. A heating blanket is a creative idea. At her age, you need to keep her at 85 degrees and then lower 5 degrees each week until she is fully feathered. A heating blanket allows her to get heat but also to get away from it when she is too hot.
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Tysm! I’ll try to keep her from feeling lonely as much as possible but I am definitely getting another chick the weekend after this one due to unfortunate timing circumstances :barnie
 
triciayoung said:
Good idea @Debbie292d. My handicap hen that cannot walk or drink/eat on her own watches Youtube live chickens on my ipad all day long.
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That’s so cute, i didn’t know they liked watching videos but i’m glad to learn that they do because I’d been wondering on methods I could use to entertain her and this popped up in my mind before!
Your chicken sounds so sweet :love
 
triciayoung said:
At her age, you need to keep her at 85 degrees and then lower 5 degrees each week until she is fully feathered.
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Just to clarify: she needs access to a place that warm, but she also needs access to cooler temperatures. That way she can move back and forth between the warmer and cooler areas, depending on how active she is at the time (just like a person gets hot if they run, but feels cold and wants a blanket for sleeping, chicks want different temperatures for different activities.)

triciayoung said:
A heating blanket allows her to get heat but also to get away from it when she is too hot.
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Exactly :)
 

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